FAQ

Board of Directors FAQs

I'd like to speak at a School Board meeting. How do I sign up?

Sign-ups for giving public testimony at regular board meetings are accepted beginning at 8 a.m. on the Monday prior to the board meeting, and the testimony list is posted to the board meeting agenda on Tuesday afternoon. Priority is given to those signing up for action and introduction items. As the board offers 20 spots for public testimony, any requests received beyond 20 will be placed upon a wait list, view additional rules and information.

How do I contact the School Board?

There are multiple ways to contact the board.

You may email the board at schoolboard@seattleschools.org to send your message to all seven directors, the Superintendent and senior staff. If you would like to email only the seven Directors and not include Board Office staff, the Superintendent and senior staff, please utilize the spsdirectors@seattleschools.org email address.

Who are the board members and which director serves my district?

Visit the School Board homepage and click on Meet the Board to see the list of the seven board members and access their personal webpages. You can click on each Director's webpage to learn more about them, see when they will be holding a community meeting and to view the list of schools in their district.

By clicking on the appropriate year in the table at the bottom of the page and then clicking on the meeting date in the first column of the spreadsheet, you will find the meeting agendas and the related documents. The minutes are linked once they have been approved by the board at the following board meeting and can be found in the second column from the left on the spreadsheet.

What are Board policies and where can I find them?

It is the duty and responsibility of the board to set policy for, and provide guidance and oversight of, the district. The superintendent often develops procedures to implement the board’s policies. Board policies are divided into numbered series by topic area, based upon the Washington State School Directors Association’s model.

What are the “Friday Memos” and where can I read them?

The superintendent typically sends a memo to the Board each Friday, providing updates from various district departments and also information requested by the Board. The archive is available on the “Friday Memos” webpage on the Tuesday after having been sent to the Board.

I have a concern at my child’s school, how do I handle it?

We always recommend that you first start with looking to resolve concerns at the school level and then moving up “the chain” if you are not able to reach a resolution.

If you have a concern with your student’s teacher, you would first work with the teacher and then the principal. If your concern is still not resolved, you would then reach out to the Executive Director of Schools for your area.